UV-C Air

At JSB Distributors, our mission is to make efficient, proven pathogen control technology more accessible to all Canadians, so they can enjoy cleaner, safer indoor environments, greater peace of mind and a better quality of life.

Think about it. People who are sneezing, coughing, laughing, singing, or shouting in a room are introducing pathogens that contaminate the air and surfaces. Infectious viral, bacterial and fungal particles do not always land on surfaces right away. How long they float in the air depends on the size of the particle.

Highly contagious illnesses such as influenza, coronaviruses, seasonal colds and measles transmit through infectious droplets, aerosols such as from coughing and sneezing, and close contact with infected people or surfaces. These viruses can survive as particles floating in the air for hours.

The reality is that washing our hands, wearing a mask and disinfecting surfaces are only the first steps in protecting employees, customers and their families.

For several decades, scientists have known that when viruses, bacteria and fungi are exposed to UV-C (ultraviolet light) at a wavelength of 254 nanometers, the nucleic acid in the DNA of these pathogens can be  inactivated.

Known as Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation (UVGI), this physical process is used in a variety of applications such as air, food and water purification.

In recent years, UV Angel has engineered an enclosed, ceiling-mounted UV-C system that treats the air we breathe automatically, continuously and safely.

Based in Ottawa, JSB Distributors is an authorized Canadian distributor for UV Angel’s UV-C air treatment system, a patented, peer-reviewed technology engineered and tested in the U.S.

Contact JSB Distributors

How UV Angel Clean Air™ works

UV Angel uses years of advanced research and development in ultraviolet light and IoT-enabled technologies to create a truly modern and effective air treatment system. How it works:

• Using patented UV-C treatment technology, air is quietly drawn into a sealed UV-C air chamber with a series of fans and a filter
• Air is circulated through the UV-C air chamber where it is treated with an enclosed high intensity UV-C light to inactivate viruses, bacteria and fungus particles
• Treated air is then returned to the room, creating a safer environment
• UV Angel Clean Air operates at 50cfm, fast enough to impact the breathing zone but not too fast as to stir up particles that have already settled. It is the best partner to manual disinfection
• The air purification system is unobtrusive and works continuously
• Requires slightly more energy (165 W) to power it than a fluorescent light (120 W)
• The platform communicates critical data seamlessly to a cloud-powered dashboard

The benefits of UV Angel Clean Air™

• Pathogens are neutralized continuously and safely as people breathe, talk and interact in the room
• The ceiling-mounted system does not interfere with workflow
• The system is very quiet: UV Angel Clean Air™ has been tested to 35 decibels (similar to quiet library sounds)
• There is no impact on room pressure; the system returns air to the room
• There is no floor space required (the system is ceiling-mounted)
• The sealed UV-C air treatment chamber can be easily integrated into existing or new construction
• Maintenance: UV Angel’s MERV 6 filter and UV-C lamp are changed once per year (compared to monthly filter replacements required for HVAC systems with MERV 13 filters capable of filtering viruses and bacteria)
• Works hand in hand with the HVAC system, boosting sanitization and providing air purification where the HVAC is not operating at optimal levels

How UV Angel compares to other filtration systems such as HVAC

UV Angel Product Safety

Unlike other devices, UV Angel Clean Air™ may be safely used in occupied rooms, allowing for 24 hours per day of shielded ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI).

This patented device uses fans to draw room air through a filter into a hidden UV-C neutralization chamber capable of being mounted onto any type of ceiling. It is ideal for a T-bar ceiling. It is CETL certified to ensure safety from UV-C rays.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that ultraviolet irradiation of air is an effective means of “reducing the transmission of airborne bacterial and viral infections.” (scroll down to view a list of Sources)

UV Angel performance: third party validation studies

Laboratory tests and mathematical modeling show elimination rates approaching 100% against more than 80 serious disease-causing pathogens.

Contact us if you have questions about these third party studies

UV Angel is already helping Canada

Ceiling mounted UV-C systems have started to gain momentum in Canada, appearing in dental offices, private medical offices, sport locker rooms, gyms and offices. The wider distribution team has been working with Dr. John Conly, CM, MD at the Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, Alberta. Dr. John Conly is a professor who is a medically trained specialist in infectious diseases. He is the Co-Director of the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases at the University of Calgary, a member of the Canadian Expert Advisory Group on Antimicrobial Resistance, and a member of the WHO Advisory Group on Integrated Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance.

The Foothills Medical Centre has been working with our technical team and, as a result, has installed this technology in a hematology ward, COVID ward and tissue transplant area. Review of other areas to incorporate UV Angel products is currently in progress.

Efficacy of ceiling mounted UV-C systems

UVGI (UV-C or ultraviolet) air treatment systems are safely operated in occupied spaces around the clock. The UV Angel Clean Air system harnesses the power of UV-C by a highly engineered, fully shielded UV-C chamber located on the back of the unit.

Contact us to review the detailed findings of these third party studies

Peer Reviewed Papers:

• UV vs. Coronaviruses: The effectiveness of UV on Coronaviruses was started by Hirano back in 1978. View a table that summarizes the results of studies that have been performed on Coronaviruses under ultraviolet light exposure, with the specific species indicated in each case.
• Air and Surface: The data indicate that using active, shielded UV-C air technology at the room level reduces the bioburden in the air and on surfaces, including in occupied spaces.
• Long-term Care Facility: Findings suggest that continuous exposure to UV-C treated air reduces HAIs (Healthcare-Associated Infections). Shielded UV-C units in patient rooms may be an effective non-staff intervention dependent method for reducing HAIs.
• Hospital: This study concluded that continuous shielded UV-C reduced airborne bacteria and may also lower the number of HAIs (Healthcare-Associated Infections), including those caused by contact pathogens. Reduced infections result in lessened morbidity and lower costs.
• Pharmacy Study: This study demonstrated how using shielded UV-C technology can decrease the spread of airborne pathogens throughout a compounding pharmacy.

HVAC vs. UV Angel: What’s the Difference?

HVAC systems are designed to send warmed, cooled or otherwise treated air through a series of ducts to be distributed through rooms in a building. More specifically, HVAC systems:

• draw out stale air from the interior of the building
• expel some of the stale air outside the building
• intake fresh air from outside to dilute the remaining stale, recirculating air
• filter that air mixture
• return the filtered air into the building interior to be recycled again

After HVAC systems filter air as it flows into a building, what is treating the air as people enter and begin talking, sneezing, coughing, and interacting with one another from room to room? It is PEOPLE (employees, visitors) who transmit pathogens through respiratory droplets, aerosols and close contact with infected people or surfaces.

Doesn’t our HVAC system already filter the air?

• Due to the very high velocity of air in most commercial HVAC systems (e.g. 400 to 1,000 cfm), it is not practical to treat the entire airstream and produce very high elimination rates against airborne pathogens in every room of a building.
• Fan-driven HVAC systems create turbulence, which keeps pathogens in the air for longer periods of time.
• If you use anything less than a MERV 13 rated filter (MPR 1500-1900 or FPR 10), you are not filtering out bacteria and virus carriers. High-MERV filters are more expensive and require replacement every 30 days. Our combined UV-C lamp and MERV 6 filter are changed annually.
• More frequent filter replacements are not only costly, but there is an increased health risk of contracting pathogens when handling dirty filters and cleaning ducts.
• UV-C in HVAC systems are designed to remove bio-film on the heating coils and are not very effective against airborne pathogens due to the airspeed.

UV Angel’s MERV 6 filters only need to be replaced once per year, working in conjunction with the UV-C lamp which is also replaced annually.

UV Angel Clean Air UV-C chamber was engineered to cause an increase in the high first-pass kill rate over a wide range of pathogens due to its high UV-C intensity and the exposure time in the chamber.

What if my HVAC uses HEPA filters?

• HEPA filters filter the air coming in from outside and not usually between rooms where people are the source of pathogens.
• Again, people bring in, expel and track pathogens from room to room as they move through and touch surfaces within a building.
• To be effectively filtered, air must pass through the HEPA filter via the supply or return ventilation ductwork.
• Having HEPA filters throughout the system is not viable because of maintenance requirements: easy obstruction of the system causing pressure drops and needing stronger fans.
• UV Angel Clean air works in cooperation with the HVAC system; air exchanges are additive and HVAC provides additional air mixing to ensure thorough air treatment in the room.

Dr. Linda Lee explains the difference between UV Angel and HVAC systems

Sources: UVGI and third-party studies about UV-C and UV Angel technologies

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2007 Guideline for Isolation Precautions: Preventing Transmission of Infectious Agents in Healthcare Settings. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/hicpac/2007IP/2007isolationPrecautions.html. Accessed 26 August 2016).
2. Tina Ethington, MSN, RN, CEN, NE-BC, Sherry Newsome, BSN, RN, MBA/MNA, Jerri Waugh, BSN, RN, MBA/MHA, Linda D. Lee, DrPH, MBA, Cleaning the air with ultraviolet germicidal irradiation lessened contact infections in a long-term acute care hospital, American Journal of Infection Control, December 2017.
3. Douglas W. Kane, MD; Cynthia Finley RRT; Diane Brown RRT, Linda Lee PhD, UV-C Light and Infection Rate in a Long Term Care Ventilator Unit, May 23, 2016.
4. Don Guimera, MSN, RN, CIC, CCRP, FAPIC, Jean Trzil, PharmD, Joy Joyner, RN, CIC, Nicholas D. Hysmith, MD, FAAP, Effectiveness of a shielded UV-C air disinfection system in an inpatient pharmacy of a tertiary care children’s hospital, American Journal of Infection Control, August 2017.
5. Linda D. Lee., DrPH, MBA, Surface and air: What impact does UV-C at the room level have on airborne and surface bacteria? Canadian Journal of Infection Control, Summer 2017.
6. Lee. Report on the Performance of the UV Angel Clean Air™ ^aWalker CM, Ko G Effect of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation on viral aerosols. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2007, 41, 15, 5460-5465 + Weiss M, Horzinek MC. Resistance of Berne virus to physical and chemical treatment. Vet Microbiol. 1986;11(1-2):41-49. doi:10.1016/0378-1135(86)90005-2 + Hirano N, Hino S, Fujiwara K Physico-chemical properties of mouse hepatitis virus (MHV-2) grown on DBT cell culture. Microbiol Immunol. 1978;22(7):377-90. ^bSaknimit M1, Inatsuki I, Sugiyama Y, Yagami K. Virucidal efficacy of physico-chemical treatments against coronaviruses and parvoviruses of laboratory animals. Jikken Dobutsu. 1988 Jul;37(3):341-5. ^cDuan SM, et. al, Stability of SARS coronavirus in human specimens and environment and its sensitivity to heating and UV irradiation. Biomed Environ Sci. 2003 Sep;16(3):246-55. Darnell ME, et. al, Inactivation of the coronavirus that induces severe acute respiratory syndrome, SARS-CoV. J Virol Methods. 2004 Oct;121(1):85-91. ^dKariwa H¹, Fujii N, Takashima I Inactivation of SARS coronavirus by means of povidone-iodine, physical conditions, and chemical reagents. Jpn J Vet Res. 2004 Nov;52(3):105-12.